I’m watching closely to see the fate of an important animal protection bill that state Sen. Stanley Rosenberg will be a key decision-maker on, and I hope he does the right thing.

Senate Bill 2232 would finally ban locking pigs and calves used by the meat industry in cages so tightly they can barely move, let alone walk.

This commonsense legislation reflects the compassionate, progressive values of our area and of those espoused by Sen. Rosenberg. He has championed humanitarian and environmental causes in the past and he now has the opportunity to utilize his clout for animals.

This bill should be treated with the same amount of urgency as other social issues. I urge Sen. Rosenberg to promote this bill as quickly as possible.

As voters in Massachusetts, we now have the chance to extend some protections to farm animals. We need our leaders to immediately pass the Massachusetts Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act to outlaw this type of abuse.